Car-washing apparatus and control therefor



Feb. 3, 1931. A. H. LESCHKE 6 CAR WASHING APPARATUS AND CONTROL THEREFOROriginal Filed June 24, 1927 INVENTOR August H- LeschKc his at orne sPatented Feb. 3, 1931 AUGUST H. LESGHKE, OF PITTSBURGH, PENNSlYLVANIACAR-WASHING APPARATUS CONTROL THEREFOR Original application filed June24, 1927, Seria1'No..201,071, now Patent no. 1,740,546, datedfneeember24, 1 1929. Divided and,this application filed August 7, 1929. SerialNo. 384,102.

My invention relates to car washing apparatus, and more particularly, itpertains to means for automatically controlling washing apparatus fortrolley-cars. This constitutes a division of my application for Let-'ters Patent for Cleaning device for railway cars, filed June 24, 1927,Serial No. 201,071,

now Patent No. 1,740,546, granted December 24th, 1929'. e

As indicated in my patent above denoted, to clean a trolley car it isdesirable to arrange on both sides of a railway a set of car-scrubbingbrush units, and it is desirable to subject the car to a spray of waterbefore it passes between the brush units, and to a rinsing. spray afterit moves from such brush units. 1 have therein illustrated and describedthe car-scrubbing units, which operate automatically upon contact of thebrushes with the car, and therein I have indicated the position ofspray-pipes to wash the car upon entering and leaving the scrubbingunits. It is desirable that the flow of water in these spray pipes maybe regulated automatically by movement of the car being cleaned, and itis with means to so regulate the water that this inventionohas to do.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure I is a diagrammatic view, showing atrolleywire'and trolley contacting devices positioned thereon, andindicating means associated therewith for controlling the flow of waterin spray-pipes; Figure 11 is a top plan view of a trolley contactingdevice; and Figure III 7 is an end elevation thereof.

Referring to Figure I of the draw ngs, two spray-pipes 3 and 4 areindicated, there being a set of these pipes arranged oppositely on eachside of the railway, together with the scrubbing units which aredescribed in my above mentioned patent. A car, in moving on the railwayor track A, to be cleaned will be sprayed first by a pair of pipes 4,then it will engage the scrubbing units '(not shown), and finally, itwill pass a pair of pipes 3 to -receive a rinsing spray. I

As said above, it is desirable that these spraying units should operateautomatlcally with. movement of the car, and to that end have providedthe following instrumental is moved, convenientlyunder its own power,

ties. On the trolley-wire 1 there is appropriately positioned in spacedrelation the four similar contacting devices 2a, 2b, 20 and 2d. One ofthese contactin devices is shown in detail in Fi ures-II and II. Itcomprises an insulating lock 5, which is attached to. the trolley-wire 1by means of the screws 6. Aifixed to the sides of the block are theelectrical conductive plates 7 and 8. As the trolley 9 of a car passesbetween these plates, electrical communication may be had from thetrolley-wire. That isto say, when the wire 10 is grounded throughelectrically operative devices, a current will flow from thetrolley-wire through the trolley-wheel 9a to the plate 8 and wire 10,whence it may flow through the electrically operative devices and to theground. I have shown the wire 10' as connected only to the contact plate8. Manifestly the wire 10 may be in electrical communication with bothplates 7 and 8, but connection to either plate will obviously serve. Itis .of advantage to provide two opposite plates, such as the plates 7and 8. This is for the reason that in providing two opposite platesthere will be no tendency for the trolley 9 to leave the trolley wire 1when it makes contact for energizing the wire 10.- Automatic operationof the sprays ensues in the following manner. A car to be cleaned alongthe track A toward the spray pipe 4.

Before the front-end of a car comes abreast the pipe 4, the trolley 9thereof engagesthe contact device 2a, and completes electricalcommunication through the wire 10 to the lever 11 which is fulcrumed at12. The outer end of this lever is pivotally connected to. the link 13,which is pivoted at its lower end to the operating arm 14 ofthe valve 15in the water supply-line 16. The. inner end of the lever ll is pivotallyconnected to the movable core 19 of the solenoids 17 and 18.- Oneelectrical terminal of the solenoid 17 is connected to a contactfinger22 and the other terminal, by means of conductor 21, communicateswith the ground. Similarly, the solenoid 18 has one terminal connectedto the contact finger 20, and the other to the ground.

Normally, the lever 11 has its outer end lowered to close the valve 15,and its inner end raised to contact the finger 20. Therefore, when thetrolley 9 eflt'ects electrical connection from the trolley-wire to thewire 10, the solenoid 18 is energized to force the core 19 downwardlyand to move the lever 11 into its illustrated position to open the valve15 and allow water to be sprayed from the pi e 4. The valve remains openuntil after t e rear of the car has passed the pipe 4, at which time thetrolley will contact the device 26-. Obviously, electrical connectionsare then completed through the wire 40, lever 11, contact-finger 22, andsolenoid 17 to the ground. This will energize the latter solenoid andcause it to force the core 19 upwardly to close the valve 15.

Operation of the valve 30, which controls the water supply to therinsing spray-pipe 3, is similar to that of the valve 15. As the frontend of the car leaves the scrubbing units and approaches the pipe 3, thetrolley 9 contacts the device 20, and completes electrical connectionsthrough the solenoid 18'. The valve 30 is thus opened to supply water tothe rinsing spray-pipe. This valve remains open until the car has movedpast the pipe 3, and the trolley has contacted the device 211 toeffectuate energization of the solenoid 17, which causes lever 11 tomove to close the valve 30. It is illustrated in closed position.

The air chamber 59 is connected to the water supply line to reventwater-hammering, which may result rom the quick operation of the valves15 and 30.

What I claim is:

1. In a trolley-car cleanin apparatus comprising a railway, a liquispray-pipe arranged along the railway and connected to a water supplyline, and a control valve in said supply line; the combination ofelectrically opera le means arranged for the actuation of the valve inthe supply line, an electrical circuit, which circuit includes saidvalve actuating means, an electrical contact device in said circuit,said circuit being energized to effect the opening of said valve uponcontact of a car with said device, a second electrical circuit, and asecond electrical contact device in the last-mentioned circuit, saidsecond circuit being energized to efiect the closing of said valve uponcont-act of the car with said last-mentioned contact device.

2. In trolley-car cleaning apparatus comprising a railway, a liquidspray pipe arranged along the railway and connected to a water supplyline, and a control valve in said line; the combination of electricallyoperable means for the actuation of said valve, an incomplete electricalcircuit, which circuit includes said valve actuating means, and atrolley contact device in said circuit, said circuit being completedupon contact of the trolley of a car with said device.

3. In trolley-car cleaning apparatus comprising a railway, a liquidspray pipe arranged along the railway and connected to a water supplyline, and a control valve in said line; the combination of electricallyoperable means arranged for the actuation of said valve, an'incompleteelectrical circuit-which circuit includes said valve actuating means, acontact device in said circuit, said circuit being completed to effectthe opening of said valve upon contact of the trolley of a car with saidcontact device, a second incomplete electrical circuit, which secondcircuit also includessaid valve actuating means, and a second contactdevice, which second contact device is included in said second circuit,said second circuit being completed to efiect the closing of said valveupon contact of the trolley with said'last-mentioned contact device.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand.

AUGUST H. LESOHKE.

